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MUSIC ART 07 OCTOBER 2020 2649
Features of academic vocal and its difference from folk and pop singing
What is academic vocal? What are its main differences from folk and pop vocals? About the technique, techniques and manner of academic singing - further in the article.
Montserrat Caballe
Features of the academic style of singing
Today, a large number of musical styles and manners have appeared, but despite the fashion, academic (classical) singing remains the standard of vocal art. Classical vocals are a brilliant technique on which the emotional component is superimposed. One talent is not enough, it takes years of training and practice.
The peculiarity of the academic production is a specific vocal position, which is often called opera or classical. Academic vocals are characterized by the "education" of voices according to classical principles. It differs in the use of vocal techniques and means such as: "covering" the sound, nasal-dental resonance, main resonance, uniform sound of the voice throughout the range (about two octaves).
Academic vocals are distinguished by singing in a "light yawn", forming a dome in the mouth, raising the soft palate and rounding the vowels. Vocalists achieve amplification of sound due to respiratory pressure in the resonator. The lower jaw and the root of the tongue are lowered, the palatal veil is stretched. This produces a loud, bright sound.
Techniques and techniques
Classical vocals have a large number of techniques and techniques, consider several of them:
Sound thinning - the technique is used when you need a smooth transition of sound to the nuance of piano or forte. He needs a good command of breathing techniques.
Cantilena - a performance that is melodic, melodious, when the sound flows smoothly without interruption.
Coloratura is a style of classical performance, which often uses complex vocal techniques. These are transitions from the thoracic register to the main, melismas. The performer of coloratura vocals sounds smoothly and evenly in all registers, gives out a bright and saturated sound.
Declamatory, recitative - close to the intonations of speech. The performer utters in a musical rhythm, which makes the recitative similar to a conversation or a song. Recitative intonations are preserved in the recitative: the performer narrates, asks, motivates to actions, exclaims.
To master such singing techniques requires not only musical abilities and the availability of promising vocal data, but also special training - voice production, which involves the ability to naturally combine vocal and speech beginnings in singing.
The difference between classical and folk vocal
Academic vocals differ from folk technique. In a folk song, the main thing is the clarity and expressiveness of the text. Therefore, the vocalists of the folk choir focus on diction, sonority of speech and brightness of performance. In the folk style of singing, the oral cavity, teeth, hard palate, and chest are used as resonators. The sound is straightforward. And academic singers use thoracic, mixed and head resonators. They easily pass from one to another, which gives a free choice of works.
Unlike a pop vocalist, whose singing during the concert is amplified by the equipment and treated with various effects, the opera singer must be able to sound the hall solely by the strength of his voice. And to make the sound not only loud, but also timbre-colored, you need to direct it to the right point, use different muscles, proper breathing, as well as vocal resonators. In addition, it is desirable to know the musical notation, learn to read the native language of the opera - Italian, and, at least, play the piano a little to disassemble the parts yourself.
Creativity of Ukrainian and world performers of academic singing
Oksana Petrusenko is one of the best performers of Ukrainian folk songs and romances. Years of creativity: 1923–1940. Natalka's part from Mykola Lysenko's opera "Natalka Poltavka" brought Oksana success. Other parts of the singer were also successful: Odarka from the opera "Zaporozhets on the Danube", Lisa (opera "The Queen of Spades"), Oksana (opera "Shoes" by Peter Tchaikovsky), Natasha (opera "Mermaid" by Alexander Dargomyzhsky).
Yevhenia Myroshnichenko is a diva of the Ukrainian opera scene of the second half of the 20th century. Years of creativity: 1943–2009. She made her debut at the Taras Shevchenko Kyiv State Theater as Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata. Major opera parts: Lucia ("Lucia di Lammermoor" by G. Donizetti), Queen of the Night ("The Magic Flute" by W. Mozart), Lakme ("Lakme" by L. Deliba). She has toured in the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. On the initiative of Yevhenia Myroshnichenko, the Kyiv Small Opera was founded in 2004.
